The virtual 1st down marker is a line that exists only in the video field and is placed there using a sophisticated combination of digital blue screen technology and pattern recognition technology. The line has become a regular feature of television broadcasts of football in the USA and has been widely praised as adding value to the broadcast. Broadcasters and football teams are, therefore, desirous of adding other similar graphic enhancements to their broadcasts using the same or similar technology.
One situation that is of interest is the field goal attempt in American football. The object is for the kicker to kick the ball above the cross bar and between the uprights of a goal post, one of which is situated at each end of the field of play.
Because of the small size of the ball compared to the goal post uprights, it is difficult to discern whether an attempt has been successful or not from merely watching the broadcast video.
This problem is exacerbated when the ball is kicked so high that passes above the height of the goal post uprights. In principle, the uprights are deemed, for the purpose of determining success or not of a kick, to be infinitely long. Real goal posts are finite in height, and a kick that sends the ball higher than the uprights makes it that much more difficult for a television viewer to discern success or not.
The present invention solves these problems by actually measuring the trajectory of the ball and inserting appropriate indicia of success or failure, such as, but not limited to, coloring the goal posts green for success and red for failure. The present invention also provides methods of predicting the trajectory of the football so that indicia of success or failure may be inserted prior to the football passing the plane of the goal post up-rights.